No, I Haven’t Been Kidnapped

Just a quick update:

  1. I have left Yemen, my limbs are intact.
  2. I had a wonderful time in that country and I will go back again.
  3. Is it courting danger? No — I firmly believe the violence is sporadic and unplanned and could happen to any city/country at any time; and if you boycott an entire country because of this, then the terrorists win.
  4. My time in Yemen was made possible by the lovely Ziad, who was also responsible for making sure I’m alive. He did a fine job, and I highly recommend this man who knows and loves his country at the back of his hand.
  5. I had the rare opportunity to live in a Yemeni home and to share their lives, food, and bathrooms with them. It was such an honour to come close to unveiled woman, an erstwhile unseen sight out in the streets, and to have been able to enjoy their home cooking and hospitality. That included the impromptu “dress Adri up” session which saw some hysterical local women (who speak only Arabic) putting flowers in my hair, henna on my body, lipstick, and dressing me up in… dresses. Yes, dresses. Scarves, jewellery, and such.
  6. Every single Yemeni person I have met has been unbelievably hospitable. There are friendly people, and then there are the Yemenis. There is no reason to fear this country. In fact, they are as pissed off as you are about the terrorists.
  7. I’ve since left the country, am now in Dubai, and some hours from now shall be in London, which I’ve missed. I’m leaving Dubai, where I have lived in for the past couple of months, for good and will cease to reside in the United Arab Emirates.
  8. For the thousands of new readers, newly arrived from the Malaysian blogfather: hello, and please continue leaving comments, writing me those nice emails, and also please check out my other site, a site featuring videos from my travels. When I get a bit more time to breathe I will respond to your emails.
  9. Existing Fortylove.tv fans (all 3 of you): sorry for slight hiatus in programming, the recent Yemeni sojourn has thrown off our schedule by just a bit. We’ll catch up with the posting as soon as we can. Upcoming episodes: a Sudanese spoken word poet, a primer to south Indian cinema (on the set with a Kannada movie dance sequence), a day at the camel races, a naked flashmob in London, and more. We’re launching some contests shortly, so join our Facebook group, follow us on Twitter, check out our site, subscribe to our show on iTunes and other newsreaders.
  10. That’s it — bye Dubai, hello London! (One day I will find a good explanation for my family on why coming home necessitates going the long way around, via London)

possibly related

Pirates, Prostitutes and Being Alive / The Things We Eat / Shisha Nights / Fortylove.tv is Rolling / Portraits of Yemen /
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13 Comments

  1. bernice
    Posted 21 March, 2009 at 11:51 am | Permalink

    hahaha I gasped when you mentioned Kenny Sia! Yes, if it weren’t for the link from kennysia.com I would never know about your interesting travel blog

  2. Posted 22 March, 2009 at 2:02 am | Permalink

    Well, thanks to Kennysia.com who brings me to this blog. Wonderful blog.

  3. Posted 22 March, 2009 at 7:04 pm | Permalink

    Interesting travel blog. Cant wait to hear more fr u. Cheers :)

  4. Jimmy
    Posted 23 March, 2009 at 4:22 pm | Permalink

    came across ur blog recently. great adventure u having, nice to learn that u have avoided a disaster. Must be prompting from God

  5. Leon
    Posted 3 April, 2009 at 8:11 pm | Permalink

    can u post photos of your adventure in Yemen please! and yeah thanks to Kenny Sia for introducing this wonderful site =)

  6. Posted 4 April, 2009 at 1:16 am | Permalink

    Hi Adrianna,
    Just found your blog and I am absolutely loving it (you)!! I like your work at fortylovetv.com as well! Hope you don’t mind if I hitch a ride on your travel blog!

  7. Posted 4 April, 2009 at 2:03 am | Permalink

    Yup,Malaysian Blogfather sent me here too.
    Love your writing and photography. Can’t wait for your next entry.

  8. purplecat
    Posted 4 April, 2009 at 11:05 pm | Permalink

    hey Adrianna
    love your blog and the adventures you’re having.i was actually thinking of joining the Emirates as an air stewardess to be based in Dubai next year.is it really that bad?after all,it is a 3 year contract.post more on Dubai,pretty please?

    ps love the videos of Dubai(and camels..haha.)on fortylove.tv

  9. Posted 7 April, 2009 at 1:32 am | Permalink

    Hello Adrianna

    Great writings of your travel adventures, followed with great interest !

    Do take care while traveling and having lots of fun !

    JH
    http://www.photojournalist-tgh.tv

  10. Posted 30 October, 2009 at 4:35 am | Permalink

    hello,

    I agree that violence could happen in any place, in any country. You really had a great adventure in Yemen. Can you post some of your pics in Yemen? Since you are often travel why not try the services of LastMinuteTravel so you can save more money and no worries for what you need in travelling. So you can enjoy and relax more on your time to a place. They can find you good hotels with a good price. Just visit their site..

    thank you again for your great article!

  11. sans
    Posted 9 November, 2009 at 4:52 pm | Permalink

    Interesting. I didn't have such a great journey before. I have cool and nice journeys everytime. To make your journeys cool and easy meet LastMinuteTravel.com site. It is providing a great services in booking hotels and flights. cheers….

  12. Posted 24 November, 2009 at 3:45 pm | Permalink

    Yeah, violence could happen anywhere. Oh, you've got a adventurous travel. Please share some of your pictures there.

  13. Posted 11 March, 2010 at 2:57 am | Permalink

    hmmm very catchy line…

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